Nebraska Supreme Court Chief Justice, Michael Heavican [left], Emily Marsh [center] and Honorable Robert F. Rossiter Jr. [right], chief judge, United States District Court, District of Nebraska.

Nebraska Supreme Court Chief Justice, Michael Heavican [left], Emily Marsh [center] and Honorable Robert F. Rossiter Jr. [right], chief judge, United States District Court, District of Nebraska.

When students graduate from higher education, there is often anxiety about finding a job they can grow and thrive in. Emily Marsh, corporate counsel at Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Nebraska (BCBSNE), however, did not have to worry about this.  

By the time graduation came around, Marsh had already completed a year and a half long internship with the legal and compliance departments at BCBSNE while attending law school.  

Once it was time to take the bar exam, an exam law students must pass before becoming a practicing attorney, Marsh received an offer to stay at BCBSNE… contingent on her passing the exam. She said it was exhausting to prepare for the two-day test. 

“Studying for the bar is basically a full-time job,” said Marsh. “I was studying every day.” 

But the hard work paid off; she passed.  

“A year and a half of experience before starting [at Blue Cross] full time was really helpful,” said Marsh. “Even for the basic things like the vocabulary used, it would’ve been hard to ease into [the role] without an internship first.” 

With a law degree, there are a variety of ways to begin your career. So why go into insurance at BCBSNE instead of pursuing work at a firm? 

“I was interested in learning more about the insurance industry as a whole,” said Marsh. “My managers gave me a lot of responsibility, which I appreciated. They challenged me, and they were very supportive.” 

While Marsh was still an intern, she says she found great mentorship in Gretchen Twohig, executive vice president, provider partnerships and health outcomes at BCBSNE. 

“It’s an encouraging feeling to know that someone with her level of experience was willing to invest so much time with me and work with me to develop my skills,” said Marsh. 

The mentorship from her managers and the variety of work are the reasons why Marsh enjoys her career at BCBSNE so much. 

“I can always ask questions,” said Marsh. “At Blue Cross Blue Shield, I’m allowed to grow.” 

Marsh isn’t alone in finding great value within BCBSNE’s intern program. Former intern program planning committee member and benefits and compliance specialist at BCBSNE, Jeremy Kaliff, enjoys seeing the experience that the interns have. 

“The most rewarding part of working with the interns is hearing how valuable they find the program,” said Kaliff. “Hearing them say that they would like to work for BCBSNE once they graduate because of their internship experience is rewarding for the intern program, committee and managers.” 

Today, BCBSNE has 31 full-time employees who were once interns at the company. Marsh’s story, while inspiring, is one of many; a true testament to how far an internship can take young professionals. 

For more articles like this, visit Team Blue.